It Ain’t All Pretty

​I stood looking at the sunrise this morning. First the light tint of pink in the sky. Gradually the deepening rose color. The clouds looked like they had been dipped in paint - and it was spreading. Patiently, I waited - and there it was, the pink orb just peeking above the horizon. Rays of light shot through the clouds, illuminating them more and more. And all I could think was: “Thank you Lord. Thank you for eyes that can see. Thank you for eyes that can see THIS!”

Immediately, I remembered (or did He whisper it to me?) that my eyes have seen some pretty awful things too. And I realized something: if I want to see beauty, then I will have to put up with ugliness.

Because vision means that you see; and this world is not all pretty. There’s no ‘turn-off’ feature. To accept the part, means I must accept the whole. Eyes that can see ‘pretty’, means they can also see … everything. And it ain’t all pretty.

I thought about that further. I was just speaking with a friend last night whose heart has been broken by some things her daughter said. Now her daughter loves her, and she loves her daughter. They have had a wonderful life together; but right now - there are some disagreements.

And so, their relationship is not all, 100%, ‘pretty’ right now.

But if she wanted to remove the ugly - she’d have to remove the pretty too. She’d have to remove her daughter’s entire life from the equation. Because that is simply the way of this world - it ain’t all pretty.

Isn’t that simply the way life is?

And why don’t I remember it…?

I do a lot of complaining. Right now, my hip has been hurting me; and did I mention my elbow? I’ve been kayaking - and I discovered that kayaking is wonderful. The peacefulness, the beauty, the fish - all of it is pretty special.

Except for the pain in my elbow which takes all of about, oh say - 5 minutes - before I remember it is there. And once again, there’s the ugly - in the beauty.

Not to mention walking, and my hip. It really takes some of the ‘fun’ out of my walk. It makes me reflect on my life - and the fact that part of it is not going according to (my) plan… Who knew that my body would not last forever? How fair is THAT?!!

But it’s easy to forget that my body has been my faithful companion for all these long years. Rarely complaining, always functioning. Well, now it’s starting to get a little worn down. So, do I focus on the ugly - or remain grateful for the pretty?

When I was given this body, I was given all of it. The energy, and the lack of it. The agility, and the lack of it. The hormones, and the lack of them.

But the only solution to this problem is to have not had a body at all. And what fun would that have been…?

Indeed, the same can be said about my life; about this world; about love; about friendships - yes, even about politics! I can’t take the part without the whole - and the whole ain’t all pretty.

I think that the sooner I learn, and remember, this lesson; the sooner peace will remain in my heart and soul - and the sooner I will realize that this is the best chance I’ve got in this world, of finding ‘pretty’ more often than ‘ugly’.

Just sayin.